How to create a DEM or DSM file?

[alliance]

no one in our survey office has ever created a DSM or DEM file. Can anyone shed some light on the most efficient and simplistic process for this?

THANKS IN ADVANCE!!!

[park]

What software do you have access to?
LAStools has a script for DEM creation if I remember correctly.

[alliance]

DJI Pilot app…but we do NOT want to use this platform. just signed up for trial version of UgCS and it needs DEM file for us to use terrain follow.

just found USGS site but navigation one video shows is not the same for what I’m looking at.

[anthonyhermanklj]

You can get a DSM/DEM for terrain following…

400 Acre site guidelines

So I still seem to need a DSM file on my SD card or on internal memory for Terrain Follow to work. To get that I went here: https://apps.nationalmap.gov/downloader/#/ [image] select the 1/3 arc sec DEM (just right density for M300), click search products and download it (geotiff). use your preferred GIS to clip it down to ~4sq miles (to fit within the M300’s max dsm file size). upload the geotiff to your controller and select that file. it will calc it out and give you a color spectrum on …

Or you can make your own in QGIS (its free).
there are several YouTube videos on this… but here’s one to get you started. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9Zy9XFOf9o

If you’re a survey firm… I’d need to know what software you already have… odds are you can use that. ie TBC, AutoCAD/ReCAP, ESRI GIS… ect… all have features that enable this.
Also it slightly depends on what type of DEM/DSM you want… raster or triangulation surface?

[alliance]

I created a geotif file via USGS, but the M300 radio only accepts kml files, not geotiff. how did you get ur geotiff file to upload? is there an additional step?

Thanks!!!

[anthonyhermanklj]

I may have missed a firmware update since I used that process… but if memory serves you’ll need to clip the geotiff down below a max file size (its small, <~ 9sq miles from USGS). Upload the GeoTIFF on the SD Card for the remote and select it within the from there. Also I am pretty sure it needs to be in WGS 84 coordinates (standard GPS).

I don’t have the craft handy (its flying elsewhere)… or I’d test it and screen cap.

[RR_Flight_Ops]

You can grab the DEM directly from the deliverables in ROCK Surveyor and then import them into UgCS. I will do a write up on this this evening. Please stand by.

[jmosher]

@rock_david , @Alex We have been working on a workaround until the Rock team creates a solution for us this Using ArcGIS PRO and the “ArcGIS 3D Analyst Pro Ext. Lic” will allow you to bring in your .las file and create a dsm as well as some other cool features. I think if you have had your .las/.laz classified in the rock cloud that it might be better to bring that file in instead of the raw .las file.

[Alex]

Sorry, I’m late to the party

@jmosher @alliance is the DEM you are wanting different than the one that is delivered with ROCK Surveyor?